As with any film festival, when attending Fantastic Fest, one should always ignore the siren song of upcoming wide releases or major studio films.
Theatrical distribution is no sure thing for many smaller and international releases, and this may be the only time many of these films play on the big screen. So pay no attention to the promise of secret screenings or closing night films; if given the opportunity, you seek out movies like Kim Jee-woon’s Cobweb 10 times out of 10.
Cobweb follows filmmaker Kim (Song Kang-ho), the only protégé of a famous director who has settled into a career of mediocrity with a second-rate studio. After completing production on his latest film, Kim becomes obsessed with the desire to film the perfect subversive ending to the movie. To make his dream a reality, all Kim needs to do is wrangle additional shoot days for his cast, mislead the head of the studio, and distract government censors who would never approve his script – completing offscreen magic in service of his art.
At this point, Song’s prowess as a leading man transcends borders. The de facto face of Park Chan-wook and Bong Joon-ho to American audiences, like so many of his protagonists Director Kim initially presents himself as a lovable loser. Yet Cobweb slowly unwinds the secrets of his directing career until only the tragedy remains. Few actors can match the tragic benignity of Song Kang-ho, and this is just the latest great performance in his already illustrious career.
While director Kim Jee-woon may be best known to American audiences for his mondo western The Good, the Bad, the Weird, his career, too, defies easy convention. Kim has moved effortlessly between genres and mediums onscreen; prior to Cobweb, his most recent work was the six-part Dr. Brain series released on Apple TV+ in the United States. Cobweb is another example of Kim stretching himself stylistically, with meticulous production design and costume details helping bring the film’s low-budget movie set to life.
Given the breadth of Kim’s work, it should also come as no surprise that Cobweb refuses to fit neatly into one box. At times, the film moves with the energy of a back-of-house comedy – think less Christopher Guest and more Peter Bogdanovich’s version of Michael Frayn’s Noises Off – but the lack of a steady stream of jokes prevents the film from ever tipping into outright comedy. When paired with the minutiae of the subject matter, the broadness of some performances can sometimes make it difficult to get into the film’s rhythm – especially when working without first-hand knowledge of the different phases of the Korean film industry.
In its most earnest moments, Cobweb weaves together a narrative about art and censorship during a pivotal period in South Korea. Those with a deeper appreciation for all periods of the Korean movie industry – particularly the ‘70s – will likely understand the cinematic connections being made onscreen, but the self-reflexive nature of the narrative makes Cobweb a bit of an opaque watch for American viewers. Those expecting another international hit would do well to temper expectations, but as with so many movies about movies, Cobweb will be a proper feast for cinephiles.
Cobweb
Fantastic Fest
North American Premiere
This article appears in October 6 • 2023.